0 Live Jesus in Our Hearts, Forever

The gospel reading for this Sunday (30 September) is from the Gospel of St. Mark (Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48). The gospel speaks of two things- following Jesus and avoiding sin. Jesus notes that whoever is for Him and does mighty deeds in His name shall receive eternal reward; at the same time he berates everybody to detach themselves from that which causes one to sin. He illustrates the lesson by telling His followers to cut off their hands and feet if they cause a person to sin.

This fire in my heart must be the same fire that burned in the heart of Blessed Pedro Calungsod. This burned in the heart of a missionary, eager to bring the Gospel of the Lord to a place where He hasn’t been heard of. At a young age (it is estimated that he joined Blessed Diego Luis de San Vitores), he willingly left home and joined the mission, to be an assistant to the Spanish Jesuit. He was a catechist, a companion, a missionary, a migrant, and a friend- and he welcomed Jesus in the deepest cavities of his heart.

We Filipinos are famous the world over for the hospitality that we show our guests, ever ready to give up the best bedroom in the house so that even the humblest guest would be comfortable. This reminds me of a La Sallete Missionary who was in the Philippines after the Second World War. He was the chaplain of a private university in Sampaloc, Manila and one day the priest was on an out-of-town trip when he decided to visit the residence of one of his frequent visitors in the chaplaincy, who happens to live in a remote village where he was visiting.

The family was poor. There was very little furniture in the nipa hut, just a chair and a papag. When the priest entered, he was treated like a king- the mother of the student gave him the seat- in fact the only seat in the house, and gave ten centavos to her son to buy two ice cubes and a bottle of soda. This was all that the woman had, and gave it so that the visitor would have refreshments. Noticing this, the priest offered to share with everybody the soda, but no one wanted to take even one sip. It was for their guest.

We are all called to welcome Jesus in our hearts. Do we welcome Him the way we Filipinos traditionally welcome our guests? Or do we treat Him like an unwanted visitor that gets sent away?

That is the challenge I present to you this week- to make our hearts a wonderful yet humble abode for the King of Kings, the Saviour of Mankind. He needs not riches nor extravagance, but a heart that does things for the glory of His name and who consciously avoids occasions of sinning. What he desires is not elegance than can rival the most expensive hotels in the world, but the heart of a person who shows compassion and love for His other creations in the way that He taught us. He prefers not glitter and gold, but simplicity, purity, and humility.

Let us promise God that we will continue to do all our actions for the love of Him. And, with a meek and humble heart, we beg him, “Live Jesus in our hearts, forever!”


By Aaron James R. Veloso

(Aaron Veloso has been helping with Blessed Pedro’s canonization since 2008. Counting Church history as one of his interests, his undergraduate thesis tackled the evolution of the Catholic Church in the Philippines vis-à-vis the evolving forms of government in the country. He is also the Prefect of the Sodality of the Immaculate Conception in the University in the Philippines. )

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